While there has been "a dramatic increase in the attention and resources devoted to partnership or collaborative approaches to public health goals in the US" (Lantz et al 2001), few of these efforts have focused on addressing the mental health needs of communities, and very rarely are youth with emotional and behavioral disorders included. The Boston Community Academic Mental Health Partnership (B- CAMHP) was established in 2006 to provide a mechanism for people with psychiatric and substance use disorders to fully participate in the design and conduct of mental health research utilizing the principles of community based participatory research. Young people with mental health and addiction recovery needs (MHARN) are at increased risk for a host of negative outcomes, including substance abuse and homelessness, as they transition from adolescence into adulthood. Despite this heightened vulnerability, a significant number of these "transition age youth" do not have access to mental health interventions and supports designed with their particular needs in mind. In late 2006, the B-CAMHP's steering committee, made up of consumers, family members and academic based researchers, decided to establish a Transition Age Youth research Project Team to better understand how these issues occur in Boston. In this proposal we seek funds for this research project team to conduct an exploratory study of the role of housing in recovery for transition age youth. Housing has been identified as a critical area of attention for this population. The development of a Transition Age Youth (TAY) Project Team will allow the voices of transition age youth to be fully integrated into the overall B-CAMHP infrastructure. Our preliminary study design involves hiring and training 4-6 TAY research assistants to conduct a series of 40 interviews with TAY living in diverse settings in Boston including, 1) residential or group home, 2) supported housing, 3) with family, and 4) homeless. In addition we will conduct 10 interviewers with key "stakeholders" in housing for TAY with MHARN. This proposal represents the next step in continuing the work of our ongoing partnership designed to bring the community and the academic world together to develop research that will better inform the development of a system of care to meet the needs of transition age youth. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: The Boston Community Academic Mental Health Partnership (B-CAMHP) was established in 2006 to provide a mechanism for people with psychiatric and substance use disorders to fully participate in the design and conduct of mental health research utilizing the principles of community based participatory research. This proposal allows for the creation of a Transition Age Youth (TAY) Project Team and the conduct of a study to explore the role of housing in the recovery of TAY with mental health and addiction recovery needs.